Senna spectabilis (DC.) H.S.Irwin & Barneby, Fabaceae

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Present on Pacific Islands?  yes

Primarily a threat at high elevations?  no

Risk assessment results:  High risk, score: 11 (Go to the risk assessment)

Other Latin names:  Cassia carnaval Speg.; Cassia excelsa Schrad.; Cassia spectabilis DC.; Cassia spectabilis var. spectabilis; Senna spectabilis var. excelsa; Senna spectabilis var. spectabilis

Common name(s): [more details]

Chinese: mei li jue ming

English: casia amarilla

Habit:  tree

Description:  "A small, rounded deciduous tree, 7-10 m (max. 15) tall, and 30 cm in trunk diameter, with a spreading crown. Bole is short, tends to fork near the ground and is wide spreading with drooping, leafy branches. Bark smooth, grey with horizontal markings, many warts and short fissures, rougher with age with broad vertical bands of large lenticels (corky pores). Twigs stout, brown with light dots (lenticels), finely hairy; young parts softly pubescent. Leaves alternate, up to 40 cm, compound (pinnate) with 4-15 (max. 19) pairs of leaflets, each up to 7.5 cm; petiole 3-4 cm; rachis 10-20 cm (max. 35); stipules paired, threadlike, linear falcate, early caducous, about 1 cm long, without glands; leaflets narrowly elliptic, 3-7 x 1-2 cm (the lowermost petal usually much smaller and early caducous); base rounded, apex acute, mucronate; margin entire, upper surface glabrous, dull green and almost hairless, with many slightly sunken side veins; lower surface dull light green and soft hairy, sometimes hairless; petiolule short, about 3 mm long.  Inflorescence large, terminal, lateral, leafy panicles, 15-30 cm (max. 90) long, which are branched and very large. Flowers many, fragrant, composed of 5 rounded hairy bracts, which are ovate, 4-5 mm long, caducous; pedicles 2-3 mm, velutinous. Sepals orange-yellow, unequal, ovate to suborbicular; 2 outer pubescent, 3 inner glabrous, larger, 5-7 mm long. Petals yellow, spathulate, unequal, broadly to narrowly obovate, 2-3.5 cm long, anthers opening by apical pores and a slit; stamens 7 large and 3 small sterile (staminodes). Pistil slender, curved, hairless; ovary glabrous, recurved; style and stigma inconspicuous.  Fruit cylindrical or flattened pods ending in a short, narrow point, hard, not splitting open or slightly on 1 side; pendulous, more or less terete or slightly compressed, glabrous, glossy, annulate-septate, 18-25 (max. 30) x 1 cm, turning from green to black; with many cross walls about 3 mm or less apart, the seeds in separate compartments. Seeds 2.5 cm each division, 50-70, suborbicular, flattened, brown, about 5 mm in diameter; septae papery"  (Agroforestree Database).

"A shrub or tree up to 50 feet tall with leaves up to 1 foot long that lack petiolar glands and have 10-20 pairs of ovate to elliptic leaflets, each 1-3.5 inches long and 0.5-1 inch wide.  The inflorescence is a raceme 2-10 inches long bearing numerous fragrant, irregularly symmetrical flowers.  The 5 petals are rich yellow; 4 are obovate but of different lengths, and the fifth is folded in over the stamens.  The fruit is more or less cylindrical, 6-12 inches long, and has tardily lengthwise-dehiscent, papery valves.  The commonly cultivated variety is var. spectabilis; the rarely cultivated var. excelsa (Schrader) H. S. Irwin & Barneby differs slightly in having smaller and fewer pairs of leaflets and larger flowers"  (Staples & Herbst, 2005; p. 326).

Habitat/ecology:  "Tolerant of cool conditions.  Altitude: up to 2 000 m, Mean annual temperature: 15-25 deg. C, Mean annual rainfall: 800-1 000 mm.  Soil type: S. spectabilis grows in deep, moist, sandy or loamy soils but flourishes even in poor, black cotton soils"  (Agroforestree Database).

Propagation:  Seed

Native range:  Tropical America (Staples & Herbst, 2005; p. 326).

Presence:

Pacific
Country/Terr./St. & Island group	Location	Cited status & Cited as invasive & Cited as cultivated & Cited as aboriginal introduction?	Reference & Comments
French Polynesia Marquesas Islands	Nuku Hiva (Nukahiva) Island	introduced invasive cultivated	Lorence, David H./Wagner, Warren L. (2013) Voucher cited: J. Florence 9693 (BISH, P, US)
French Polynesia Marquesas Islands	Nuku Hiva (Nukahiva) Island	introduced cultivated	Florence, J./Chevillotte, H./Ollier, C./Meyer, J.-Y. (2013) Voucher cited: J. Florence 9693 (PAP) Cultivée
French Polynesia Society Islands	Tahiti Island	introduced cultivated	Florence, J./Chevillotte, H./Ollier, C./Meyer, J.-Y. (2013) Voucher cited: J. Florence 6617 (PAP) Cultivée
French Polynesia Austral (Tubuai) Islands	Tubuai Island	introduced cultivated	Florence, J./Chevillotte, H./Ollier, C./Meyer, J.-Y. (2013) Cultivée
Guam Guam Island	Guam Island	introduced	Raulerson, L. (2006) (p. 35)
State of Hawaii Hawaiian Islands	Hawai‘i (Big) Island		Bishop Museum (U.S.A. Hawaii. Honolulu.) (1991) (voucher ID: BISH 596362) Taxon name on voucher: Senna spectabilis (DC.) H.S.Irwin & Barneby
State of Hawaii Hawaiian Islands	Hawaiian Islands	introduced cultivated	Wagner, Warren L./Herbst, Derral R./Sohmer, S. H. (1999) (p. 697)
State of Hawaii Hawaiian Islands	Maui Island		Bishop Museum (U.S.A. Hawaii. Honolulu.) (1987) (voucher ID: BISH 535172) Taxon name on voucher: Senna spectabilis (DC.) H.S.Irwin & Barneby
State of Hawaii Hawaiian Islands	O‘ahu Island	introduced invasive cultivated	Lau, Alex/Frohlich, Danielle (2012) (p. 17) Voucher cited: OED 2009081801 (BISH)
State of Hawaii Hawaiian Islands	O‘ahu Island		Bishop Museum (U.S.A. Hawaii. Honolulu.) (1952) (voucher ID: BISH 456421) Taxon name on voucher: Senna spectabilis (DC.) H.S.Irwin & Barneby
New Caledonia New Caledonia Archipelago	Île Grande Terre	introduced cultivated	MacKee, H. S. (1994) (p. 74) Vouchers cited: MacKee 21966, MacKee 26240
Papua New Guinea Papua New Guinea (eastern New Guinea Island)	Papua New Guinea (eastern New Guinea Island)	introduced	ILDIS Co-ordinating Centre (2013)

Pacific Rim
Country/Terr./St. & Island group	Location	Cited status & Cited as invasive & Cited as cultivated & Cited as aboriginal introduction?	Reference & Comments
Central America Central America (Pacific rim)	El Salvador (Republic of)	introduced	ILDIS Co-ordinating Centre (2013)
Central America Central America (Pacific rim)	Guatemala (Republic of)	native	International Center for Research in Agroforestry (2013)
Central America Central America (Pacific rim)	Honduras (Republic of)	native	ILDIS Co-ordinating Centre (2013)
Central America Central America (Pacific rim)	Honduras (Republic of)	native	International Center for Research in Agroforestry (2013)
Central America Central America (Pacific rim)	Nicaragua (Republic of)	native	International Center for Research in Agroforestry (2013)
Central America Central America (Pacific rim)	Panama (Republic of)	native	ILDIS Co-ordinating Centre (2013)
Central America Central America (Pacific rim)	Panama (Republic of)	native	International Center for Research in Agroforestry (2013)
China China	China (People's Republic of)	introduced cultivated	Zhengyi, Wu/Raven, Peter H./Deyuan, Hong (2013) "Cultivated in Guangdong, S. Yunnan".
China China	Hong Kong	introduced cultivated	Wu, Te-lin (2001) (p. 136) As Cassia spectabilis DC.
Malaysia Malaysia	Malaysia (country of)	introduced	ILDIS Co-ordinating Centre (2013)
Mexico Mexico	Mexico (United Mexican States)	native	U.S. Dept. Agr., Agr. Res. Serv. (2013)
Singapore Singapore	Singapore (Republic of)	introduced invasive	Chong, Kwek Yan/Tan, Hugh T. W./Corlett, Richard T. (2009) (p. 79) Casual
South America (Pacific rim) South America (Pacific rim)	Chile (Republic of)	native	International Center for Research in Agroforestry (2013)
South America (Pacific rim) South America (Pacific rim)	Colombia	native	U.S. Dept. Agr., Agr. Res. Serv. (2013)
South America (Pacific rim) South America (Pacific rim)	Ecuador (Republic of) (continental)	native	ILDIS Co-ordinating Centre (2013)
South America (Pacific rim) South America (Pacific rim)	Perú (Republic of)	native	U.S. Dept. Agr., Agr. Res. Serv. (2013)
Thailand Thailand	Thailand (Kingdom of)	introduced	ILDIS Co-ordinating Centre (2013)

Indian Ocean
Country/Terr./St. & Island group	Location	Cited status & Cited as invasive & Cited as cultivated & Cited as aboriginal introduction?	Reference & Comments
Mauritius Mautitius Islands (Mauritius and Rodrigues)	Mauritius Island	introduced	ILDIS Co-ordinating Centre (2013)
Seychelles Seychelles Islands	Seychelles Islands	introduced	Invasive Species Specialist Group (2017)

Also reported from
Country/Terr./St. & Island group	Location	Cited status & Cited as invasive & Cited as cultivated & Cited as aboriginal introduction?	Reference & Comments
United States (continental except west coast) United States (other states)	USA (Florida)	introduced	U.S. Dept. Agr., Nat. Res. Cons. Serv. (2013)

Control:  If you know of control methods for Senna spectabilis, please let us know.